The Shadowed One
"The Shadowed One" was the leader of the Dark Hunters. History Early Life The Shadowed One originally resided in a colder region of the Southern Island Chain, created by Mata Nui and based upon the genetic coding of several existing sapient species alongside the rest of the Grenok species. Met with moderate success, the species was permitted to continue populating their region of the Matoran Universe, though their numbers were kept in check by harsh terrains and inhospitable climate. Roughly 80,000 years ago, however, the Grenok societal structure became precarious, with Grenok such as "Ancient" hiring their services out in the field of espionage. With the Ancient Wars ravaging the Grenok homeland, The Shadowed One witnessed a natural disaster wipe out the island in a spectacular blaze of elemental fury, decimating the population and leaving only a handful of scattered survivors. Convinced that the natural disaster had been intentionally triggered by Mata Nui to purge the Matoran Universe of his species, The Shadowed One ferried a small group of surviving Grenok off the ruins of their island. Dark Hunters With the League of Six Kingdoms disbanded and with many residents of the Southern Matoran Universe harboring less favorable sentiments towards the Toa as Mata Nui's chosen species, The Shadowed One and "Ancient" were able to rally support from warriors native to the southern universe, uniting them into a composite mercenary guild named the Dark Hunters. Settling on the island of Odina, which had once been home to a short-lived species similarly entirely wiped out by a natural disaster The Shadowed One nestled the cradle of the Dark Hunter organization on this site, vowing that his mercenary syndicate would represent the misfits of the Matoran Universe; the species that had been neglected, dismissed, or even wiped out by Mata Nui. Believing his cause to be righteous and his role to be legendary, The Shadowed One commissioned one of the surviving natives of Odina as his scribe, dubbing him "The Recorder". As the Dark Hunters began to rise in prominence after several early assassination attempts, The Shadowed One endeavored to legitimize his mercenary guild as a fearsome force, unknowingly necessitating the secret formation of the Order of Mata Nui. Under The Shadowed One's early rule, the earliest generation of Dark Hunters were notorious for raiding vessels and villages in an instant then disappearing the next, claiming all manner of cargo, weapons, and bounties with little regard for collateral damage. Frequently, Dark Hunters would be tasked with missions that demanded them to eliminate or transgress certain Toa, the general sentiment being that Toa represented a law that was unjust. During this time, The Shadowed One secured the allegiance of Ancient, "Conjurer", "Lurker", Sentrakh, and "Eliminator", who would prove to be some of his most experienced and capable operatives. Between 60,000 and 30,000 years ago, the Matoran Universe entered a golden age of prosperity with reduced Dark Hunter activity, with both the Toa and the Brotherhood of Makuta cooperating to ensure universal peace was maintained. During this time, the Order of Mata Nui was known to have contracted "Ancient" as a double agent, relaying tactical information directly to Toa Helryx whilst operating behind The Shadowed One's back. Following the evolution of the Makuta species, however, the Dark Hunters began a policy of open hostility towards members of the Toa species, with the vast majority of their number dissatisfied with the universal protectors. Seeking to expand the Dark Hunters, The Shadowed One notably accepted a female assassin named Lariska into the organization, who swiftly risen to a position of high esteem and was commissioned as one of The Shadowed One's foremost generals. Lacking in a wider ambition during this era of his career, however, The Shadowed One pursued a number of obscure goals seemingly for the thrill of interference, most notably commissioning "Lurker", Triglax and "Gatherer" to capture a Toa of Psionics named Varian simply for the purpose of holding her in a stasis tube to adorn his trophy room. Seeking to debilitate the Toa forces on a universal scale, The Shadowed One dispatched an unnamed Dark Hunter to retrieve the Makoki Stone from the Toa Fortress. Following the successful completion of this mission by "Ancient" and the interference of two Skakdi thieves, The Shadowed One was known to have inducted the first six Skakdi into the ranks of his organization: Zaktan, Hakann, Vezok, Reidak, Avak, and Thok. Aware of the unpredictable and treacherous nature of these operatives, The Shadowed One soon caught the Skakdi recruits attempting to assassinate him in his throne room. Using his eyebeams on Zaktan, The Shadowed One was unexpectedly responsible for mutating the Skakdi's composition as a living mass of Protodites. Perplexed by this effect, The Shadowed One allowed his would-be murderers to live, dubbing them Piraka. Toa/Dark Hunter War In the years after this assault, however, The Shadowed One became prideful and sought to establish a Dark Hunter foothold in Metru Nui, sending numerous waves of mercenaries to win Metru Nui, both through attempted assassination of Turaga Dume and instructing the Piraka to unleash the Kanohi Dragon upon the island only to constantly find his efforts foiled by the Toa Mangai. After nearly three centuries of brewing tensions, the Toa/Dark Hunter War finally erupted, a conflict that spanned across Metru Nui. Lasting roughly one year, the confrontation escalated considerably once Toa reinforcements stormed the island and began to outnumber the mercenaries. In the final days of the war, Lariska was known to have attempted to tip the balance of the fight by convincing Toa Mangai Nidhiki to betray the other Toa by luring them into an ambush. However, while the Toa proved cooperative, Lariska's strategy was predicted by Toa Lhikan, who orchestrated an ambush of his own and ultimately exiled the Dark Hunters from the City of Legends. Humiliated, The Shadowed One ceased his campaign and all Dark Hunters that were fighting in the war withdrew from Metru Nui, along with Nidhiki, who would later become a member of the organization himself. As punishment for her choice of traitor, The Shadowed One personally dismembered Lariska's left arm, replacing it with a mechanical appendage. Over the course of the following century, the unsavory agendas of both the Brotherhood of Makuta and the Dark Hunters became more clear to the Toa and the Order of Mata Nui. This period also saw a general decline across the universe, as the Brotherhood began to pay less attention to preserving order and more to their own ambition while The Shadowed One continued to expand his criminal enterprise, earning the sympathy of dissatisfied working masses across the Matoran Universe. By the onset of the Dark Times, the total Dark Hunter population had begun to see drastic increase in size, with members of the organization growing more experienced and with The Shadowed One constantly searching for new potential in his ranks. Great Cataclysm 1,001 years ago, on the eve of the Great Cataclysm, The Shadowed One leased the services of "Eliminator", Krekka, and Nidhiki to Makuta Teridax, who was enacting the first phase of his Grand Plan to seize control over the Great Spirit Robot but was finding himself continuously marred by the interference of the local Toa Team. Permitting the request, The Shadowed One unwittingly facilitated in the Great Cataclysm, an event that saw the deactivation of Mata Nui's Core Processor and a universal shockwave. Following the disappearance of Nidhiki and Krekka, however, The Shadowed One left Lariska in temporary command of the Dark Hunters and traveled to the City of Legends with Sentrakh, intent on personally investigating the incident and meeting Voporak once he landed. Commuting by boat, The Shadowed One and Sentrakh ventured through one of Metru Nui's Sea Gates, stumbling upon the discarded Kanohi of the fallen Toa Mangai of Earth. , as drawn by BionicleChicken.]] Whilst in Metru Nui, The Shadowed One remarked unusual behavior from Vakama, the local Toa of Fire, who began traveling through Ga-Metru escorted by a Visorak Boggarak and Makuta Teridax. After tasking Sentrakh with tailing the Toa and witnessing an explosion in the Great Temple, The Shadowed One resolved to confront the Toa of Fire and his Makuta accomplice only to discover that Teridax had needlessly betrayed and killed both Nidhiki and Krekka. With Toa Vakama revealing the fate of the pair, The Shadowed One engaged the Makuta in battle, using his disintegration eyebeams to clip the Makuta's wings but ultimately losing the duel, finding himself thrown onto Voporak. Aged several thousand years by prolonged physical contact with Voporak, The Shadowed One was able to pull himself free, vowing vengeance on Teridax and his disciples, sparking a thousand-year war against the Brotherhood. With Mata Nui now distinctly absent and The Shadowed One's subconscious goal achieved, the leader of the Dark Hunters took drastic military action against the Brotherhood of Makuta, involving himself in the front lines of numerous Dark Hunter offensives, devising strategies to ambush entire Rahkshi squadrons and inconvenience numerous members of the Makuta species. With the Matoran Universe running on auxiliary power and the Brotherhood of Makuta now in a prime position of power, The Shadowed One spent the majority of the Dark Times engaged in espionage operations, eager to exact his vengeance on Teridax for forcibly aging him. Towards the end of this conflict, the six Piraka were known to have splintered off from the Dark Hunters, forging their own path as unwitting pawns in Makuta Teridax's Grand Plan. As such, The Shadowed One was known to have hired Vezon in their place and tasked him with retrieving the Kanohi Ignika on behalf of the Dark Hunters. Shortly after departing Odina, however, the mad Skakdi cut all ties to the organization and betrayed The Shadowed One. Around this time, The Shadowed One also commissioned "Lurker" to gather intelligence on the Brotherhood of Makuta and investigate the alleged murder of Makuta Teridax on the island of Mata Nui. Destiny War With the Dark Hunter profit margin beginning to dwindle after so many years of conflict with the Brotherhood, the organization came to partner with the Order of Mata Nui, several members of whom revealed their identities within the ranks of the Dark Hunters, including "Ancient". With all facets of the guild infiltrated, The Shadowed One was forced to partner with Toa Helryx and her accomplices, an arrangement that equipped the Dark Hunters with more troops in their war against the Brotherhood of Makuta but under the direction of Order tacticians. Believing "Ancient" to have betrayed his trust, The Shadowed One bitterly complied with the dictates of the Order of Mata Nui. The Shadowed One would briefly confront the Toa Nuva on Odina, who stormed his throne room and overpowered several of his sentries in search of the Staff of Artakha, an ancient tool thought to be in his possession. Despite revealing that he had bartered the Staff to a Vortixx weaponsmith in exchange for munitions several centuries ago, The Shadowed One would be buried beneath a pile of rubble once Toa Pohatu used his Elemental Powers to destroy the fortress. Emerging from the wreckage, The Shadowed One ordered that the fortress be rebuilt and mobilized the Dark Hunters into an invasion force. Tasked with blockading the island of Xia to prevent its inhabitants from trading weapons with the Brotherhood, The Shadowed One was present to witness the battle between the Kanohi Dragon and the Tahtorak in the city's skyline, along with a significant proportion of the Dark Hunter population. However, The Shadowed One took this task too seriously, preparing to completely eliminate the Vortixx only for the combined might of Toa Helryx and Toa Hagah: Norik, Gaaki, Bomonga, Pouks, Iruini, and Kualus to disrupt the bombardment, reminding The Shadowed One of his position and cautioning him not to overstep his authority. In the end, the Dark Hunters occupied the island at the behest of the Order of Mata Nui. Bolstered by the Order of Mata Nui's reinforcements, the Dark Hunters would go on to achieve a number of significant victories over the Brotherhood of Makuta, relying on Order of Mata Nui intelligence to facilitate their partnership. Met with little resistance, The Shadowed One would eventually step back from his role as his agents fought alongside the Order of Mata Nui, deferring to the leadership of Toa Helryx and Tobduk, her lieutenant. Whilst inspecting the destroyed factories of Xia, however, The Shadowed One encountered a Vortixx who appeared to be searching for something in the rubble. Trapping the Vortixx in Crystalline Protodermis, The Shadowed One went on to claim his quarry, retrieving one of the viruses that Makuta Kojol had brought to Xia in the months before his death. Confronted by "Ancient" in the wreckage of the structure, The Shadowed One came to recognize the enormous destructive potential of the viruses, resolving to keep them for his own purpose and murdering "Ancient" in order to ensure his silence. Reign of Shadows After Makuta Teridax took control of the Matoran Universe and announced the success of his plan, however, The Shadowed One was forced into hiding as the Dark Hunters were branded enemies of the Makuta's new world order. While initially welcoming of Mata Nui's downfall, he came to realize that the Matoran Universe was no better off under Teridax's rule quicker than most. Approached by Kalmah, Mantax and Ehlek, The Shadowed One proposed an alliance with the former Barraki warlords, sensing that their ambitions and hatred of Makuta Teridax aligned. Agreeing to negotiate, the Barraki proposed that The Shadowed One travel to Karzahni, where he would meet their leader, Pridak, and formalize their alliance. However, The Shadowed One would soon remove himself from the landscape of Xia after discovering the true potential of the vials, with one of the samples even proving to be a prototype of the virus Teridax initially used to trigger the Great Cataclysm. The Shadowed One thus began to experiment with the viruses, using one of them to inadvertently shatter every Vortixx within a kio radius into fragments. With the Dark Hunters scattered and with pockets of resistance emerging across the domes of the Great Spirit Robot, The Shadowed One remained separate from the resistance forces, proving too stubborn to ally himself with Toa despite most of his Dark Hunter generals begrudgingly joining the movement. Once the Matoran Universe successfully landed on Bara Magna, The Shadowed One emerged onto the surface of the planet, where he witnessed the Battle of Bara Magna, the struggle between Teridax in the Matoran Universe and Mata Nui in the Prototype Great Spirit Robot, and the empowerment of Toa Tahu, who used the Golden Armor to vaporize Teridax's Rahkshi army. Mata Nui was then able to complete his mission of reforming Spherus Magna from Bara Magna, Bota Magna and Aqua Magna. Spherus Magna Following The Reformation, Mata Nui used his final vestiges of energy to revitalize the Spherus Magna ecosystem, enabling the planet to accommodate the denizens of both Bara Magna and the destroyed Matoran Universe. In the first year of Spherus Magna's reformation, The Shadowed One notably reformed the Dark Hunters into a new mercenary guild, recruiting the remaining Barraki as his top generals and advisers. Welcoming Skrall, Bone Hunters, and other residents of Bara Magna into their ranks, this new faction gradually because to claim a major foothold on the planet. Alternate Versions The Kingdom In the Kingdom Alternate Universe, The Shadowed One was among the survivors who evacuated the old universe after Mata Nui died, allowing him to escape to the barren island of Mata Nui on the surface of Aqua Magna. There, after the island was sustained to support the population, The Shadowed One established himself once again as the leader of the downtrodden masses alienated by the Matoran social system. Earning himself a place on the Kingdom of the Great Spirit Ruling Council, The Shadowed One concerned himself with governance and expansion of the island. Long War Alternate Universe In the Long War Alternate Universe, The Shadowed One sided with the Great Spirit's Legion, where he was a member of the ruling council. His decisions were often very extreme; almost all the time his opinions were ignored, the only exception being Helryx. Abilities and Traits The Shadowed One was celebrated as an especially charismatic and ruthless leader, valuing the undying loyalty and efficiency of his operatives above all else. Considered by some to be sadistic, The Shadowed One enjoyed pairing Dark Hunters with conflicting personalities together, but whether this was for character building or his personal amusement remains unclear. His most well known pair was Krekka and Nidhiki. First and foremost, however, The Shadowed One was motivated by a hatred of Mata Nui, having witnessed the Great Spirit's destruction of his homeland and purging of the numerous short-lived warriors species formerly inhabiting the Southern Islands. Envious that the Toa received Mata Nui's favor, The Shadowed One endeavored to destabilize Mata Nui's control over the denizens of the Matoran Universe with every action. As a member of the Grenok species, The Shadowed One possessed no natural Elemental capabilities and was incapable of utilizing Kanohi. Despite this, he was gifted with the ability to fire concussive Disintegration Eyebeams, which were capable of disintegrating a target at an atomic level. Arsenal As the leader of the Dark Hunters, The Shadowed One had access to all manner of exomorphic armor designed by his technicians, which increased his natural endurance and was equipped with noise-cancelling technology. Primarily, The Shadowed One utilized the Staff of Protodermis, a spear-like weapon capable of firing bursts of energy that encased a target in Crystalline Protodermis. Mounted upon this staff was a Rhotuka Launcher that fired madness Rhotuka, which could cause trauma to the point of insanity in a target's mind. Trivia *Initially, Greg Farshtey had plans to reveal The Shadowed One's real name as the story developed. However, after fan backlash over the naming of Makuta Teridax, Greg chose not to name The Shadowed One. Appearances *''BIONICLE Adventures 10: Time Trap'' - First Appearance *''BIONICLE Legends 4: Legacy of Evil'' *''BIONICLE Legends 5: Inferno'' - Mentioned *''No One Gets Left Behind'' *''The Dweller Report'' - Mentioned *''Toa Nuva Blog'' *''Federation of Fear'' - Mentioned *''Destiny War'' *''Dwellers in Darkness'' *''Reign of Shadows'' - Mentioned *''Dark Mirror'' - Alternate Universe *''The Kingdom'' - Alternate Universe See Also *The Shadowed One's Building Instructions Category:Matoran Universe Category:Dark Hunters